Every year, the Woodland Park Zoo hosts a wine tasting event to raise money for field conservation, science education, animal care, and facility maintenance. The Woodland Park Zoo, a Seattle zoo opened in 1899, is a 92 acre property that is home to over 1,000 wild animals. This year, the “Tasting Flight” event took place on July 19th. Of course, Walla Faces trekked the five hour drive from Walla Walla to Seattle to be a part of it! The “after hours, adults-only” fundraiser turned out to be a blast!

We brought our 2008 Fusion Red, the Rick & Debbie, and our 2008 Syrah, the Caroline, to taste. Each of the 35 participating wineries had a table set up in the the zoo’s gorgeous North Meadow. The lovely, sunny weather was perfect for appreciating the beauty of both the zoo and the wines. Because the wineries were arranged alphabetically, we were neighbors with the wonderful Walla Walla Village Winery.

When the doors opened at 6pm, we were overwhelmed by the turnout of this sold-out event. We were also thrilled to meet so many Seattleites who had stayed with us in the Walla Faces hotel or who had visited the Walla Faces tasting room on their wine tourism adventures.

In keeping with the Woodland Park Zoo’s conservationist ideals, participants brought their own glasses to the event. We had a great time looking at the fun glasses that everyone brought! We saw everything from expensive Riedel glassware to mason jars, from light-up wine glasses to coffee cups. Regardless of the glassware used, Walla Faces was one of the evening’s favorites. Participants exchanged tickets for pours of wine, and we quickly found our decanter filled to the brim with yellow paper.

The penguin exhibit was open to wine tasters, and the penguins were happy to oblige viewers by sunning themselves and taking a dip. Wine and penguin-watching might just be my favorite wine pairing yet.

Our wines were available for sale in wine store, another tent that laid out each winery’s wares. Happily, at the end of the night, we found that we brought the perfect amount of wine; we came home with one bottle of each wine.